On the go and no time to finish that story right now? Your News is the place for you to save content to read later from any device. Register with us and content you save will appear here so you can access them to read later.

The selectors are known to like offering loyalty towards their players, although the dumping of fast-rising wicketkeeper-batsman Glenn Phillips ahead of the Pakistan series decider at Mount Maunganui on January 28 shows they can deliver a punch or two when they feel necessary.

Otago host ND in Dunedin, Wellington play CD in the capital while Canterbury play Auckland in Christchurch.

It's not a like-for-like situation 50 vs 20-over cricket, but at least keeps those players in work. It also means a pile of players, broadly speaking the senior members, have time off until the Wellington clash against England.

The selectors won't particularly care, but the last three results against Pakistan - who improved remarkably at the fag end of their tour - and Australia adds grist to the mill for those who maintain New Zealand aren't as good as they're cracked up to be at the shorter forms. Their argument goes that put them up against strong opponents and they are as vulnerable as anyone and the early-season run of success was largely down to weak opposition.

Rightly or wrongly, the Sydney night out will have strengthened that view.

New Zealand were really poor, and never got out of the blocks; Australia will be suitably buoyed; England are good anyway. Right now, what price an England-Australia final at Eden Park on February 21? A cracker for the neutrals.

The squad will assemble in Wellington on Saturday which clearly rules them out of Sunday's final round robin Ford Trophy games.

One change which must happen is taking a more nimble approach with de Grandhomme. The one saving grace in Sydney, the Auckland power-hitter can't again bat as low as No7, especially in a situation such as that which unfolded in Sydney.

If the argument runs that he's most damaging in the last four or five overs, surely with his boundary-clearing talents he's potentially even more valuable getting seven or eight overs to work with.